– 2 Tim. 1:7 (MSG) – That precious memory triggers another: your honest faith—and what a rich faith it is, handed down from your grandmother Lois to your mother Eunice, and now to you! And the special gift of ministry you received when I laid hands on you and prayed—keep that ablaze! God doesn’t want us to be shy with his gifts, but bold and loving and sensible.
Paul said that for him, one precious memory triggered another. He clearly had the gift of encouragement. In this passage he encourages Timothy one way, then it triggered another encouragement. This is how we keep the gift God gave us ablaze!
– 1 Tim. 4:14 – Until I come, give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching. Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you.
Timothy had the gift of teaching, and Paul is telling him, and us, that it’s easier to keep momentum than to build momentum; it’s easier to keep a fire going than to start a fire. I’ve tried to start a fire in the rain without matches, or paper, or cheater items… its hard, okay? Blogging started hard, but now it keeps my teaching gift ablaze; I blog about a subject, throw in one random concept, then the next post is wholly on that little concept. It just keeps going! It’s effortless. God wants the gifts to flow in and out of us as effortless as the air we breathe. Amen!
– Heb. 12:29 – our God is a consuming fire.
It doesn’t take long to start a fire and keep it going as long as you are getting closer to God.
Newton’s law of inertia states: An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force
I noticed two things from this statement:
1. We need to be the influence on people who are at rest
2. We need to laser zap the enemies attempts to knock us off course. Keep the gift ablaze!
insert ‘pew pew’ sound effect with your mind voice.. or aloud if you really want to be a geek
Knock down every demonic thought of discouragement, fear, rejection, hatred, religion, or whatever enemy comes from the pit of hell against you. Take the sword the Word of God that says ‘I am more than a conqueror.’ ‘Greater is He who is in me, than he who is in the world.’ ‘My God loves and accepts me.’ ‘My God is my refuge and strong fortress.’ Go to war. There are plenty of times that I play fighter video games and just press random buttons, but I still win! I take down people who actually know the right buttons to press on the game. Likewise, you can just keep quoting scripture through your day. It is taking down the enemy. 
Every once in a while, someone will know the button combos really well, and they will beat my random fire method. I don’t have the patience to learn button combos for a fighter video game, but I sure can take the time to realize life is a real battlefield, and learn which tactics work the best against which enemies. If I’m going to write a post about homosexuality, I can guess what the enemy is going to throw at me, so I go ahead and sharpen the sword in that direction: ‘It is sin. We all sin. We are saved by grace alone. If I teach, but have not love, I am a noisy worthless gong.’ God makes you a skilled warrior that way.
Figure out what your God given gifts are. Then put them to use and fan the flame! Here’s a link to my previous blog, and the assessment test for gifts: Finding Your Purpose & Giftings
John Wesley was kicked out of the church, but he went into fields and preached and thousands of people would come listen even in the cold and rain. When asked how he got people to come listen, he said:
I think it looks better with a young Joan of Arc though! Around 1412, she was 19 years old and leading a revolution. Everyone has a gift that can spark momentum. I know I have gifts. I have lots of gifts, and the church keeps turning me down, so clearly God has put me here for a reason. I will blog. O, I will set these keys on fire. Watch me burn!
Worship: Unspoken – Start A Fire
Prayer: Help your people find their purpose and direct them to the places they can use them. We need people on the streets, in the news, in politics, in medical fields, in sales,in car repair. Don’t let us get discouraged because we aren’t ‘needed’ in the church building. The church is not a building; it is the body of believers and I need those people everywhere. Scatter and disperse us. Cause us to go out in groups to encourage each other and take each realm of influence for you, in Jesus name; Amen.
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